Hi,
The last forks I bought were 2003 Marzocchi Z1 FR”s coil in 130mm. These were still going strong but have become rather rattly recently and the ETa has failed. I could strip and Service if I can get bushings and cartridge etc, however Given their 2.4kilo weight I’m starting think that the time has come for a replacement.

So are Marzocchi still the be all and end all of reliability? Or are the Rock Shox Reba RLT Dual Air worth a punt.
In all honesty I prefer reliability over bells and whistles but a lock out or ETA like lock down would be nice..

answers on a postcard please..

PS going on Dialled PA Hardtail with QR front wheel.

I’d go Magura. I went from z1 freerides to a set of Durins and they’ve been great and still like new after 3 years. I service them at home every so often but haven’t serviced the damper once, it’s probably due but still working perfectly. They are qr but have a double arch so they steer well without much flex and have put up with my 17 stones in the alps and all sorts. 3.5 lbs too so light for what they are.. Great forks.

I got mine off a US ebay seller for around half UK list.

since 2003 a lot has happened…

marzocchi became rubbish, this allowed the newly SRAM owned Rockshox to nick all their loyal customers, also aided by the fact that they got really good. Fox also got good, but still cling to painfully short service intervals (think, servicing your forks every 15 riding hours).

magura started to gain a reputation as good forks, but have never really reached the big time.

In the last 2 years, marzocchi have turned things around, and are now very very good.. IMHO the best forks around at the moment – particularly if you’re in the market for a coil fork (their RC3 Ti forks are superb). Their 3 year ‘no service’ warranty is hard to beat.

To sum up to market now:
Rockshox – default option – solid, dependable but maybe not the *best*
Fox – lovely forks, but temperamental. If you don’t mind servicing them yourself, they’re a good option – especially if you like ‘bling’.
Marzocchi – brilliant forks, but not regained their reputation with everyone yet, due to the frankly shite stuff they peddled for about 5 years.
Magura – I have no direct experience with these, but those with them seem to love them. Quite high prices.

Did I miss anything?

Dave

Pace- dead, now DT Swiss
DT Swiss- Generally avoided due to stories of short lifespan but may well be good. No-one knows as no-one seems to buy them 😀

There’s also X-Fusion of which I know nowt.

I’m a Magura man and hope to stay that way.

Fox are VERY expensive.

Thanks for the detailed responses so far 🙂
I had heard the Marzocchi gone shite rumour but hoped it wasn’t true 🙁
If they’re back to their old selves I may dig further.

I think there are very few 130mm forks out there at the moment if you want 130mm again-most seem to be 120 or 140mm. I am after some 130mm forks myself and mostly seem to be looking at U-Turn style or having to put spacers in.

Alfabus has it.

For me Rockshox all the way. Good and reliable, very easy to service too.

Fox are better but their isnt enough of a difference to warrant the extra £££s

DT Swiss – HOW MUCH??

Magura a bit of an unknown quantity seem to have a pretty loyal following amongst those that use them.

Marzocchi reputation took an absolute hammering in recent years. Apparently they are now good again but still more expensive than RockShox.

If I was serioulsy minted it would be BOS as they make some really decent kit!

Rebas,

Next?

Manipoo?

The Minute range has 130mm for 275 notes

Not sure about the Op but i was looking for something with 15/20mm axle which limits things a bit too

I’m QR 9mm but have a pro 2 front hub so conversion is a doddle if I find a QR 20/Maxel type bargain.

Runnign 150mm 2012 Revelation RCT3’s spaced down to 130mm which are pretty good, would suggest a set dual air RLT’s if you can find them cheap online.